Looking Back… Makin’ Moosetracks 09

Originally posted on the WPSMB on 1-20-10

The last few years, in lieu of a Christmas letter and cards to the fam and friends, I’ve been putting together a slide show of pics as a kind of giant TR. My parents usually get flooded with emails and calls shortly after I forward the movie out, and I can see them rolling eyes, sighing, and shrugging shoulders as they attempt to explain to everyone that yes, they indeed know what I’m up to; yes, they “allow” it to happen (as if they have a choice); yes, they appreciate that phone call home on Sunday nights; and no, they don’t always like to see the pics (“MUCH too close to the edge, Laura!”).

Let’s break it down, since the past three years are starting to blur together. Like Summit Scott recently said, it started with trails, then ginger steps off of them. Learning to navigate. Planning trips. Longer days and nights. Different tools. Different people. But all in one direction: outside.

And that’s what I learned last year. For me, it’s now about continuing along the road. Sure, I still get a rush when I stand atop a summit, a sense of accomplishment. But now I feel more appreciation: to those who were with me that day, to those who have stood there before me, to those who have taken the time to teach me the skills I needed to get there, to those who have stood with me in trying times, to the mountains themselves for presenting their challenges, and to myself for stepping out the front door that morning.

I have no idea where this road will take me, but I hope to be walking it for a long time. There may yet be stories to tell, and I’ll be happy to share when they come to me.

In the meantime, if you’ve got some spare time, my slide show is available here. I tried uploading it to a few vid sites, but it’s too long for youtube, and the music is copyrighted (even though I don’t make anything off of it) so others balk (will someone please feed the starving artists!). It takes a while to download as a Quicktime vid, so I apologize in advance. The slide show itself runs about 20 minutes.

To all my friends and family, best of luck in 2010. Maybe we’ll see each other out in these hills we treasure so very much.